By Cecep Darmawan
Guru Besar dan Dekan FPIPS Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia
At the end of 2025, the public was surprised by the results of the Academic Competency Test (Tes Kemampuan Akademik/TKA) at the senior high school level, which showed that the average scores in core subjects were relatively low. These results sparked widespread debate. Do they reflect a failure of the national education system? Or are they merely a technical anomaly in the assessment process?
However, from a clearer and more constructive perspective, the data is not simply bad news, but rather an objective reflection that compels us to honestly evaluate ourselves. Indonesia’s education system is facing serious challenges, but at the same time, it holds great opportunities for systemic improvement.
On the one hand, the 2025 TKA results can be seen as a strong warning that various education policies, programs, and practices have not fully contributed to improving student learning outcomes. On the other hand, the data provides a healthy space for reflection to improve the direction of education development based on evidence (evidence-based policy).
In this context, the Education Resolution 2026 becomes crucial—not merely as a reactive response, but as a strategic step to reorganize the foundation of national education in a sustainable way.
Technocratically, Indonesia’s education development is not lacking direction. In the National Long-Term Development Plan (Rencana Pembangunan Jangka Panjang Nasional/RPJPN) 2025–2045 and the National Medium-Term Development Plan (Rencana Pembangunan Jangka Menengah Nasional/RPJMN) 2025–2029, education is positioned as a key pillar of human resource development.
The main objective is clear: achieving equitable and high-quality education. The indicators are also comprehensively formulated, including average years of schooling, expected years of schooling, learning outcomes measured through PISA scores and national assessments, as well as the gross enrollment rate in higher education.
Future Challenges in Education
However, when these indicators are compared with current empirical realities, several challenges remain.
In terms of the average years of schooling (Rata-rata Lama Sekolaj/RLS) for people aged 15 and above, national data from BPS RI (2025) shows a figure of 9.41 years. This indicates that, on average, Indonesians aged over 15 have only completed education equivalent to junior high school.
Similarly, the expected years of schooling (Harapan Lama Sekolah/HLS) stands at 13.30 years, suggesting that Indonesian youth are projected to complete formal education only up to the diploma (D-1) level.
This condition reflects a gap between the goals of education development and the actual participation of society.
The situation is further exacerbated by the low gross enrollment rate in higher education. Based on BPS RI (2025), the rate stands at only 32.89%. In the context of global competition driven by knowledge and innovation, this figure presents a serious challenge for Indonesia’s vision of Golden Indonesia 2045.
From the perspective of learning quality, the challenges are equally significant. In the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2022, Indonesia’s score was 369—lower than neighboring countries such as Thailand (394), Malaysia (404), Vietnam (468), and Singapore (560). This fact shows that Indonesia’s education problem is not only about access and participation, but also about the quality of learning.
Similarly, the 2025 TKA results at the senior high school level remain relatively low. As reported by Media Indonesia (2025), the average scores were 24.93 for English, 36.10 for Mathematics, and 55.38 for Indonesian.
Therefore, these macro-level indicators represent major challenges that must be addressed to achieve Golden Indonesia 2045.
When viewed comprehensively, these education indicators confirm that Indonesia is facing structural challenges in education development. Therefore, the Education Resolution 2026 is expected to begin with an objective evaluation of previous achievements.
Such evaluation must be accompanied by strong political will to implement breakthrough policies that can accelerate both the quality and quantity of national education.
The resolution must begin with the government’s consistency in following the direction, goals, and targets outlined in the RPJPN 2025–2045, RPJMN 2025–2029, and the Indonesian Education Roadmap 2025–2045. This consistency is essential to ensure that education policies do not constantly shift due to short-term dynamics, but instead move along a long-term national development trajectory.
In addition, future education policies and programs must be inclusive, comprehensive, systematic, participatory, and sustainable. Education should not be designed solely within bureaucratic institutions but must involve teachers, lecturers, parents, professional organizations, universities, and the broader educational community.
Furthermore, education policies must be grounded in academic research and empirical evidence (evidence-based policy), rather than relying on trial-and-error approaches.
The year 2026 also calls for real policy breakthroughs. These breakthroughs must not be partial or sectoral, but should comprehensively address educational issues from upstream to downstream.
One crucial agenda expected in 2026 is the formulation and ratification of the National Education System Bill (RUU Sisdiknas) using a codification method.
This codification approach is expected to simplify and integrate various education regulations that have long been fragmented and overlapping. More than just a legal product, the bill is expected to become a regulatory compass that guides all national education policies and programs.
If ratified in 2026, the bill has the potential to provide a strong foundation for resolving regulatory issues while opening opportunities for measurable and sustainable policy innovation. With a clear and consistent legal framework, Indonesia will have a stronger position to improve its national education index and global competitiveness.
Ultimately, the Education Resolution 2026 must be built on rational optimism. While the data shows significant challenges, it also reveals opportunities for change. Indonesia’s education system is not at a dead end, but at a crucial crossroads in determining its future direction.
With the courage to reflect and evaluate, consistency in implementing development plans, and commitment to policy breakthroughs, Indonesia’s education system is expected to move beyond a “business as usual” paradigm toward a more transformative approach, one that truly improves the quality of education. From this point, the vision of Golden Indonesia 2045 can find a solid foundation.
Importantly, the discussion relates to SDG 4: Quality Education through efforts to improve access to and the quality of education, SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities by addressing gaps in educational participation, and SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth by strengthening human resources through education to support sustainable economic development.